After sending the message to Princess Celestia, Sunset and the girls hung near the portal waiting for a sign from the Princess. Applejack and Pinkie Pie were playing a card game on top of the statue. Rarity was painting Fluttershy's nails while Rainbow, Sunset, and Snowdrop sat beside the statue.
"I'm thinking she's not coming back," Rainbow said, passing the ball between her hands in a solo game of catch.
Just then, the portal suddenly flashed and a small swirling vortex formed. Just as suddenly as it appeared, a purple blur shot out from it. They all looked at the individual and saw it was Princess Twilight and her assistant Spike. Sunset quickly sat up and ran up to her.
"I'm… back…" Twilight said. Rubbing her head. She saw an amber hand sticking out to her and looked up to see Sunset standing there. She went to grab her hand but hesitated for a moment before finally taking her hand and standing up.
"Twilight!" rest of the girls quickly ran towards her and gave her a bear hug. While Sunset moved behind the group of friends reuniting. She didn't want to get in the way of such a happy occasion for the girls.
"You are back. I thought the portal was closed," Applejack said.
"Well, I found a way, and girls… I got some bad news about those new girls." Twilight said. Just then, she saw the little girl hanging on to Sunset's arm. "Who's this?" The girls turned around to see Twilight looking at Snowdrop.
"Oh, Twilight, meet Snowdrop, my sister. Snowdrop, this is the Princess I told you about, Princess Twilight." Sunset said to the confused Twilight and her excited sister.
"Your sister?" Twilight asked.
"It's a long story. I'll tell you later, you know when there isn't a dimensional crisis," Sunset said.
"Are… are you really a… p-princess…? Snowdrop asked, reaching out for Twilight.
"You are right. It's nice to meet you Snowdrop, I am a princess. Though my friends just call me Twilight," Twilight said, taking Snowdrop's hand.
"Okay, seems like we have a lot of catching up to do. Why don't we head over to the Sugarcube Corner?" Applejack suggested.
"Oh, I do hate that you had to visit in a time of crisis. We have so much catching up to do." Rarity said, sitting right to Twilight on a sofa.
"For starters, we have that little Snow Apple, and a certain guitarist was asking about you," Applejack said.
"Flash was asking about me!?" Twilight shouted before quickly trying to compose herself, though the damage was already done. "I-I mean, of course, that's very nice of him," The girls just stared at her with a knowing smile.
"Ahem, well now that's very nice, but I have to know about Sunset's sister. How did this happen? I thought you came here alone," Twilight wondered as she turned to her left, where Snowdrop sat.
"I mean, I did come here alone. It's a kind of a long story. In short, we got adopted, and now we are sisters," Sunset said, growing more uncomfortable with the attention of Twilight.
"You got adopted? By who?"
"As I said, it's a long story, so I'll tell you that later. First, we need to stop those girls," Sunset said, as she changed the subject. Sunset didn't know why but she almost wanted to keep her relationship with Celestia secret for now. After all, Twilight was a princess, and from what Spike told them on the way over to Sugarcube Corner, she was a big-time princess now with a title and everything. Twilight really was Celestia's prized pupil. Meanwhile, Sunset was just a self-absorbed brat that betrayed and failed Celestia as her student. The two of them were as different as the night was from the day.
"Right, so what do you know about these girls, I have my suspicions of who they are, but I need to make sure I'm right. And since we don't have the elements with us, we need to find a way to defeat them quickly," Twilight said.
"Well, just as we said, they simply sing, and then everyone around them just suddenly got all mad and crazy," Applejack said.
"They also have these strange necklaces around their neck, and I think they can control people's minds or at the very least their emotions, which is essentially the same thing. They were able to convince m-, I mean Principal Celestia into turning the musical showcase we are supposed to have tomorrow into a "Battle of the Bands"," Sunset said with air quotes before she finished telling Twilight about her observations.
"Also, who said we don't have magic?" Rainbow said, pulling up her phone and showing a video they recorded at the party at Sunset's home. Twilight looked at the video in shock as she saw the girls transform into their magic forms like they had the night of the fall formal. "Pretty sweet, huh? It happens every time we play music."
"Hm… my crown was returned back to Equestria, but some of its magic might have remained here. Now that we are all here, we can use that magic again on those sirens, just like we used it on Sunset." Twilight said but gasped as she realized what she just said. "Sorry, no offense," She quickly apologized to Sunset.
"Ha... none taken," Sunset said, sighing.
"Sirens?" Rarity asked.
"They were a powerful race back in Equestria, but I thought they were extinct," Sunset said.
"They are, but apparently, Star Swirl the Bearded sent the last of them here, and I think it's those three," Twilight said.
"But, that was at least a thousand years ago. How are they still alive?" Sunset asked Twilight.
"I don't know how. It could be they are like Celestia or Discord. They are immortal beings, or there could be some time displacement from Starswirls spell that sent them forward in time. The possibilities are endless, especially considering that Starswirl moved them through space. Many theories exist about dimensional existences and travel that are still in their infancy. All I do know is that we will stop them. We must."
Later that night, they went to the party organized for the Battle of the Band in hopes of defeating the sirens. However, the party was not going well. Everyone was shouting at each other, and some people almost got into fistfights a few times. It was then that Twilight realized just how grave the situation actually was. Her sudden meeting with Flash Sentry confirmed the grimness of their position even further. Before long, the trio the girls were waiting for arrived. Twilight and the rest of the Rainbooms quickly made their way over to the Dazzlings. Sunset and Snowdrop waited off on the sideline.
"They are going to stop them, right?" Snowdrop asked Sunset.
"They will, I know they will," Sunset said with conviction.
The Rainbooms held each other's hands with Twilight in the middle, and she shouted with all her might, "Friendship is Magic!!" and unleashed the magic of friendship on the sirens and blasted them with a Rainbow Laser…
… Or at least that's what they expected to do. Instead, what followed was an awkward silence as they waited for the magic to take effect, which didn't happen.
"Something's not right," Sunset said as she waited for the magic to appear like it did that horrible night or the night of the party. Snowdrop gripped Sunset's hand tighter.
Crushing the expectations, what happened next was Adagio making the whole scene into a declaration of war and making the entire crowd yell in anger at each other. Sunset could feel the same dark magic happening again. She was sure Twilight felt it too. Twilight and the girls made their way quickly out of the stadium, with Sunset and Snowdrop meeting them at the doors.
"I don't understand. It makes no sense. I should be able to create the spark that would help us break their spell. That's how it worked before." Twilight ranted as she walked back and forth in front of the school entrance while the rest of the girls sat on the staircase.
"But you used the magic from the crown I was wearing to defeat me. The sirens draw magic from singing, so maybe you should do the same. I mean, the girls only gain power and transform when they sing," Sunset said thoughtfully.
"Hm… I think you are onto something," Twilight said finally after she thought over the suggestion.
"Really?"
"Uh-hu… as Sunset said, you only transform when you sing. So the way to defeat the sirens must be to use a musical counter-spell," Twilight said, grinning, as she finally got the answer thanks to Sunset.
"You mean, like a song?" Fluttershy asked.
"Exactly, but when are we going to use the spell? Do any of you know when we are going to meet them again?"
"The band competition!" Rarity shouted, standing up. "Everyone will be there."
"Guess the Rainbooms are the band to beat," Applejack said.
"And I believe you, Twilight, just became the Rainbooms' newest member," Rarity announced. Twilight quickly turned nervous as all the girls ran towards her. And then Pinkie pulled out various musical instruments seemingly out of nowhere and asked Twilight what she was going to play. Sunset, on the other hand, hide her hurt as much as she could.
"I might take longer to learn to do anything with those," Twilight said, wiggling her fingers. "I'll just sing,"
"Like as in, lead singer?" Rainbow came beside Twilight and asked. "Couse that's usually my gig. You know, it being my band and all."
"Our band." Applejack interjected. "And as the lead singer, she's the one with the magical knowhow to pull this thing off," Applejack said as Rainbow again boasted about her guitar skills.
"It's only temporary. And we don't actually have to win the battle of the bands," Twilight said as a means to pacify the rainbow-haired girl.
"So let's get to learning that musical counter-spell," Rainbow shouted.
"Oh, by the way, isn't Sunset part of the band?" Twilight asked.
"Well, we asked her, but she didn't want to be a part of the band," Rainbow said before Sunset could talk.
"Yes, even though she said she can't play many instruments, she is very good at sound balancing," Rarity pointed out, looking at Sunset.
"Well, yeah… I'll just stick with that," Sunset said, rubbing her head. "So, do you know of any counter-spells?"
"Well, that's just it, I don't know any," Twilight said, to which everyone frowned. "But, I'm sure I could figure out how to write one,"
"Yeah, Twilight can write a spell like it's nobody's business," Spike said, patting Twilight's shoe. "That's pretty much how she got to become a princess in Equestria."
"Technically, I finished a spell. And there's a little more to it than that Spike."
"Yeah, whatever."
"I've got this, come on," Twilight said before picking up Spike and walking back to the school.
"Uh… where are you going?" Applejack asked.
"Well, the last time we were here, Spike and I spent the night at the library."
"Are you crazy!" Pinkie shouted, walking up to Twilight. "We are besties now. Slumber Party at my house," Pinkie said, hugging Twilight and literally lifting her off the ground as they moved towards the exit.
"That's a good idea. I was going to suggest that because I knew Twilight wouldn't have a place to stay the night and I don't think it's a good idea for Sunset and Snowdrop to go back home," Applejack said.
"What do you mean?" Sunset asked.
"Your mom and aunt are under the spell of the sirens. You saw how they acted before, right? So I agree with Applejack. You two shouldn't go back to them at the moment," Rarity said.
Sunset looked down, thinking over what they said. And they were all right. Sunset felt someone tugging her jacket and looked down at Snowdrop.
"We are going to get them back, right?" Snowdrop asked. Sunset could sense the fear in her voice. Even though Sunset didn't show it on the outside, she, too, was feeling the same thing. But for the sake of Snowdrop, she has to be brave.
"Of course, my little snowflake, we are going to get them back, okay?" Sunset said as she hugged Snowdrop. "Alright, we will come with you," Sunset said as she held Snowdrop's hand.